Tucked at the end of a strip mall, behind Mary Lou’s Coffee and Cohasset House of Pizza, is an unexpected oasis.

The Cohasset Yoga Center has been a peaceful place for local yogis to relax, reflect, and practice their asanas for over 20 years.

Changes are afoot at the center, with longtime owner Mary Norton exiting and new owner and yoga instructor Catherine O’Callaghan taking the helm, introducing new classes and unveiling a revamped website.

When Norton opened the center two decades ago, it was quite the novelty, according to O’Callaghan. “There were no other studios anywhere” in the area.

“I feel it needs to be given new life,” O’Callaghan said, adding that she wants to “keep the torch going” after Norton’s departure. “She was here this entire duration… It was only with her consent that I took it over.”

While making the transition from old ownership to new, O’Callaghan plans to continue the proud tradition of being the “center” for yoga in Cohasset. The new owner said that she respects the fact the center is the “oldest and most reputable” yoga studio in town.

But the yoga tradition stretches back even further in Cohasset, said O’Callaghan.

“I’ve heard that yoga is seeped into Cohasset’s history,” the yogi said, adding that she believes the Boston area is the first place yoga came to the U.S.

Regardless of how it all began, O’Callaghan said that, simply, the Cohasset Yoga Center “is the place for yoga.” And the strip mall location doesn’t take away from that; the owner said that despite being in a busy plaza, she has never heard a car whizzing by the center.

The center manages to carve out some green space, visible through the windows in the main studio and smaller practice room, where teachers work on their lessons or self-practice, or students can work on poses in private. The smaller space is also available for workshops and small groups, such as bridal parties.

If you really need to get away from it all, there’s a downstairs treatment room for Reiki and massage therapy.

In addition to the studio space, there is also a retail store that carries boho-chic jewelry, tunics and, of course, yoga mats, equipped with a comfortable seating area. O’Callaghan said that the shop and lounge was added on to the side of the main studio to expand and “provide some energy” to the space.

O’Callaghan said that she has loved the center since she first walked through its doors to start her teacher training, after she discovered yoga five years ago and “never looked back.”

Page 2 of 4 - “This is a gem,” she said of the center.

Working alongside O’Callaghan as she embarks on her new path is her daughter Charlotte, a college junior who is studying marketing and spending her summer interning at the center. O’Callaghan has three other daughters, all of whom were raised in Cohasset and attended the public schools.

While Charlotte is new to yoga, she “sees the benefits.” She has been charged with maintaining the center’s new social media platforms, including Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, and also helping with the website’s new blog.

The website was created by Doug Eymer of Eymer Designs, based in Cohasset, and launched this week.

Other new things are on their way to the Yoga Center, including new teachers. O’Callaghan’s yoga background is in vinyasa, and she has brought in four new vinyasa teachers, the center also offers ashtanga yoga, and is one of the only studios south of Boston to do so.

If you’ve practiced yoga at the center in the past, you’ll see some new faces among the instructors, but the rest will be familiar. “We didn’t have anybody leave,” said O’Callaghan, adding that it’s testament to the community of the center, which she hopes to build upon.

“This is what yoga is all about – it’s a union,” O’Callaghan explained, adding that the center is more than just a place to exercise. “It’s not about practicing yoga – it’s living yoga,” she added. “It’s who you are.”

Those who want to try out a class at any level are encouraged to drop in – or just drop by. “You don’t have to come for a class,” said O’Callaghan. “You can just come!”

You don’t have to be a fitness expert or a contortionist to learn to work through various yoga poses. Cindy Mathieson teaches ashtanga yoga, which is the most traditional form of yoga that teaches a set sequence of postures, which “everyone learns in the same order,” the instructor explained.

And while the poses, or asanas, range in difficulty, ashtanga involves the instructor working with each individual yogi on their level. “It’s not about being able to do fancy poses,” said Mathieson. “It’s to build health in the body.”

This format encourages yogis at all levels to develop their own personal practice, so that they can take their yoga with them wherever they may go, whether they “take their mat to the beach or do it at home,” said Mathieson. “It builds the discipline of daily practice.”

Page 3 of 4 - The poses are also taught in Sanskrit, so that students could take a yoga class in any part of the world, from Berlin to Tokyo, and understand what the names mean. “It’s a universal language,” said Mathieson.

The center offers ashtanga six days a week, more than any other studio on the South Shore, said Mathieson, who completed her ashtanga training in Boston in 2006.

“Cindy is an accomplished teacher, and we are blessed to have her,” said O’Callaghan.

If ashtanga is not your style, there are plenty of others to try, including Kripalu yoga, yin and restorative, and Pilates fusion. Mathieson encourages those new to yoga to “try different styles and find the one that speaks to you.”

Being the yogis that they are, the instructors will be flexible. “Most classes are all levels,” said O’Callaghan, adding that teachers will accommodate their students of all skill levels.

If you’re an advanced athlete of a different persuasion, there’s a yoga for that. The center is offering a special workshop for athletes on June 22 from 4 to 6 p.m. to help prevent injuries and balance their training.

“Yoga is the perfect compliment to anything,” said O’Callaghan.

Triathlon

The center is also offering a free yoga class to anyone competing in the upcoming Cohasset Triathlon, available throughout the month of June. There is also a “bring a friend to yoga” promotion to earn a free yoga class this month.

O’Callaghan said that she would like the center to continue its charitable tradition on the local level, finding groups to partner with. In the past, the center has given back to the Cohasset and Scituate food pantries.

It’s one way to continue the center’s traditions. Mathieson said that she thinks O’Callaghan is “just the right person to come here” and keep the center going strong.

“Catherine is a gift, having received something important and wanting to share it,” she said. “She has the perfect opportunity here to share her talents.”

And while O’Callaghan only recently became a certified yoga instructor, Mathieson argued, “She has probably been a yogi her whole life. She has it innately.”

O’Callaghan demurred that she couldn’t do any of it alone. “I’m just guiding the boat,” she said. “There are a lot of oars in the water.”

For more on the Cohasset Yoga Center, including lists of classes and teachers, visit www.cohassetyogacenter.com, call 781-383-314, or stop by the center at 124 King Street (Route 3A) in Jonathan Livingston Square.